By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA
Chris Battaglia suddenly faces a bit of a loyalty dilemma.
On Saturday, the Webster Schroeder girls’ basketball team will play Aquinas Institute in the Section V Class AA championship game.
Schroeder is coached by Codi Battaglia Mrozek, his daughter, while Aquinas is Battaglia’s former school – and now his new school.
Battaglia on Thursday was named head football coach of the Li’l Irish. He replaces Maurice Jackson, who was relieved of his duties on Monday despite guiding AQ to the Section V Class AA championship last fall.
This is Battaglia’s third stint as head coach at AQ. He guided the Li’l Irish from 1985-1988 before starting a 10-year run as an assistant coach at the University of Rochester. He became the Aquinas head coach again in 2006, kicking off an incredible stretch of success.
In those 11 seasons, Aquinas won nine Section V crowns and four state championships.
“My father-in-law always said that to win it all, you have to have it all, and we did,” Battaglia said on Thursday evening. “We had a lot of great kids, a lot of great players and a lot of great families.”
That success, as well as Battaglia’s commitment to school’s values of goodness, discipline and knowledge, prompted Aquinas officials to reach out this week.
“Aquinas football is built on tradition, and that tradition is rooted in the development of student-athletes who succeed on and off the field,” athletic director Anthony Bianchi said in a news release. “Coach Battaglia’s record speaks for itself, but it’s his dedication to the charisms of Aquinas that made this decision so clear.
“His leadership will ensure that our program continues to thrive.”
Said Aquinas president David C. Eustis: “More than the accolades, it’s his unwavering dedication to the young men in this program that made this decision an easy one.”
Battaglia spent the past seven years at Irondequoit on the football staff of Dan Fichter, overseeing the defense while also serving as quarterbacks coach. He said the only job that could have ever pried him away from Irondequoit was a return to Aquinas.
“Leaving is very difficult because I love Dan Fichter and I love the kids,” he said.
But he also knows there is work to do at Aquinas.
“At this time, the program needed someone that’s familiar with it and can help it regather its feet,” Battaglia said. “It’s a little off the tracks and we’re going to try to get it back on the tracks.”
If anyone knows how Aquinas football rolls, it’s Battaglia. His past success with the Li’l Irish is unmatched. AQ won six consecutive Section V Class A titles between 2006 and 2011, then moved up to Class AA and brought home the championship block in 2012, 2013 and 2015.
“I love the school and I love the kids,” Battaglia said. “We want to get football back to being a high school sport, where kids play and have fun.”
Coming along on the return trip to the Dewey Avenue campus is Derek Annechino. He was an assistant on Battaglia’s staff from 2006-2016, then served as head coach from 2017-2022. He was the offensive line coach at Irondequoit last season.
As news of the hiring spread on Thursday, former players were calling and texting Battaglia.
“I don’t think I have enough coaching positions available for all the kids that have called and asked if they could help,” he said.
But what about Saturday’s basketball game? Who will Battaglia be cheering for?
“I’m true blue,” he said, referring to Schroeder’s blue, white and gold colors. “I roll with ‘Code.’ ”
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